Bill Gundy: Distorted beliefs, dubious conclusions

Social scientists offer convincing evidence that personal beliefs influence our interpretation of events and can determine which facts we consider relevant — or choose to ignore entirely. Accordingly, when evaluating editorial opinion, it is useful to consider whether the writer’s beliefs tend toward a liberal or a conservative perspective. It is equally important to determine if the totality of available facts provides a solid bridge to the author’s conclusions, or whether the reader is expected to leap across a chasm of supposition and bias. Though comparison requires generalization, it is important to understand some fundamental differences between conservative and liberal thought.